Love Actually
by brown-ink
Summary: Katie and Oliver never really got along well. But their friends don't seem to notice. Even after a LOT of unsuccesful set-ups. And Katie thinks it will stay that way, hopefully. My first fic, please RR...
1. Prologue

Love Actually  
  
Disclaimer: The title is taken from the movie "Love Actually" though the plot is different. The characters belong to J.K. Rowling (though I would have wanted Oliver Wood and Katie Bell).  
  
Prologue:  
  
It was midday on the first day of school that I first noticed Oliver Wood. It was pathetic really, the poor scrawny guy was trying to lift his trunk. Now that we're in our seventh year, I never would have guessed (or even thought) that Wood would eventually become our Quidditch Captain. I mean, come on, sure he was Quidditch-obsessed but he was--well, he was just plain thin. He developed quite nicely though, "nicely" in the sense that he had his fair share of fans (and a lot more?). I, on the other hand, never developed quite "nicely" even if I was very much into Quidditch like Wood. I was and still am a slightly overweight girl. Heck, my weight is on the team's side when it comes to games, I can readily kick Marcus Flint's ass. Going back to Wood, he was never really into academics as I was. He would be out there playing in the Pitch while his ton of homework piles up more than a meter high while I would be happy spending most of my time in library and having my share of Quidditch later on. In short, Wood=purely Quidditch (I wouldn't be surprised if he had a Quaffle for a brain), me, Katie Bell=school+Quidditch later. It's that simple. It's the same thing I don't hang around him much. And that is the main reason why Angelina and Alicia are pushing me to him (and Fred and George pushing Oliver to me). Doubtless to say, despite the occasional "dates" (where Wood and I would stare at our butterbeers for a few splendid hours without a single word said) and tantrums (I throw one every time my so-called friends set me up again), our relationship never really developed into something (at all). Then why the hell are Angelina and Alicia still pushing it?  
  
It's another Hogsmeade Weekend. And yet another "date" with Wood. We sat in our usual booth in the Three Broomsticks, again staring at the fizzing butterbeers plunked down by Madam Rosmerta earlier. I tore my eyes for a moment from the table and looked out the window with a sigh. That's when the unthinkable happened.  
  
"I take that you're as bored as I am." Wood said. WHAT THE--? Is he actually talking???  
I mumbled a little, looked away from the wonderful world outside this stupid pub. "Apparently."  
"Don't get brainy with me, Bell, it won't do you any good." He said, looking amused. BRAINY??? BRAINY?  
"I'm not being brainy Wood." I snapped, looking at him hard, "What gave you that idea?"  
  
He chose it that this was the time to be smart aleck and smirked at me. He actually smirked. Why I ought to strangle the stupid guy. He took a drink out of his glass and surveyed me through bemused eyes. Not ceding to defeat, I stared blankly at him. He chuckled.  
  
"Pray tell what is so funny Wood. I'm just dying to know." I said sarcastically. He still didn't notice that I was trying to insult him. How THICK can a person be???  
""It's nothing really, Bell. Now, why don't we give our friends the satisfaction by getting to know each other more, eh?" he said, laughter still twinkling in his eyes. Getting to know each other, BAH HUMBUG. Trying to be witty, eh? Wood? Too bad you can't carry it.  
I let out a small sound that was a cross between a sarcastic chuckle and disbelief. "You know me Wood. I've been you're classmate since first year." Damn you Oliver Wood for that stupid secret smile of yours!!! "Fine, what do you want to know about me."  
He smiled wider as if he wanted to emphasize his triumph. "Nothing much."  
"Then, why don't you start." I said sharply.  
"Okay, first question: Why are you so snappish right now?"  
"Well, it's a great day outside, the library would be probably deserted. I could to my homework but NOOO, I have to go to Hogsmeade to meet YOU, AGAIN!" I said, sounding more and more irritable with each word said.  
"Good point. I could be out at the Pitch again if Fred and George hadn't threatened to resign as Beaters." He said, nodding in agreement. Needless to say, this irritated me even more. "Second question: Why are you so obsessed with schoolwork?"  
"I plan to become the Minister of Magic." I said shortly.  
"You could do that without being too submerged in schoolwork, y'know. And why don't you loosen up a little, have some fun?"  
"That's why I'm in the Quidditch Team."  
"Last question: Have you ever been into a real date?"  
"No." I looked at him queerly. "Is that all you wanted to ask?"  
"No further question, your Honor."  
"Riiight. I see you've been listening to Muggle Studies."  
"I try." he smiled. What the HELL is WRONG WITH ME??? Why do I have those weird lurches when he smiles like that??? This is not normal. I have to get out of here now. He was still smiling that weird secret smile of his. It's like he was having some sort of inside joke or something. It's like I wanted to be in on that joke (A/N: that description of Wood's smile is not mine. I got it from "The All American Girl" by Meg Cabot). Oookay, I think he's finally growing on me. BAH.  
  
A/N: Sooo. what do you guys think. It's my first fic so it's not very--uhm-- flowy yet. Please tell me if I should still continue it. Please R/R. Thank you. 


	2. Midnight Tea

Disclaimer: I own nothing (for now.) ***bolt of lightning and evil laugh in the background***  
  
Chapter One:  
  
"How was it?" Angelina called to me lazily from the bathroom. Alicia was reading another romance novel (curse her for being an incurable romantic). I grunted in response, tired from the walk from Hogsmeade I finally plopped back down into my four poster bed. "Was it really that bad?" she asked again, emerging from the bathroom with damp hair and using a freshly ironed school shirt.  
  
"Why do you always ask me that?" I snapped, burrowing my head into my pillow.  
  
"Because I will never give up on you, you tart." she said sitting on her own bed.  
  
"Nothing happened, Miss Nothing's Impossible. He talked for the first time. That's all!" I squirmed as the effects of the words I muttered began to take effect. I looked up to see Alicia lay her book down and Angelina to stand up quickly from her bed and jumped into me, giving me the hardest noogie I've ever had (since the last time my brother visited). We both collapsed into the floor in a small crash and a muttered "Ow." from me.  
  
"I need to go to the library now." I said, as Alicia opened her mouth to begin her prying.  
  
Angelina blocked the door. "Oh no, you don't. We've been trying to set you up with Wood for YEARS now and now that something GOOD actually happened, you actually THINK that we're going to let you go that EASILY???" she half shouted, a manic gleam in her eyes. She pinched me.  
  
"Ow! Okay, okay. I'll talk!! Stop pinching me." I finally blurted out after that death pinch. I sat down massaging my arm where Angelina pinched me. There I sat down for two whole hours while the grueling interrogation took place. They spent that whole time dissecting and reevaluating every single WORD that got out from WOOD's mouth. Really, if they took him seriously during practice, they won't spend every afternoon practicing Quidditch.  
  
***  
  
Craving peppermint tea... Seariously, there must be something wrong with me. I know I've always liked peppermint tea but as the years went by, my cravings just jumped from every morning and every evening to every morning and evening and dawn and midnight!!! That is the reason why I am stalking the corridors to the Kitchens to make goddamned peppermint tea!  
  
I reached the painting of the bowl of fruit and quickly tickled the pear with my shaking left hand. Since it was a little after midnight, nobody was there, not even a house elf. I was just boiling some water in a small teakettle and walked into the pantry to find the brown sugar and dried peppermint leaves. I found it sitting on top of the highest shelf, me, being a little vertically limited, started jumping up and down.  
  
"Need help, Bell?" someone chuckled. I don't blame them, i must've looked weird in my long baggy thick cotton t-shirt reaching up to my calves. Heck, maybe I would have laughed myself silly. This might sound so cliché but... y'know, it was Wood. He walked towards me and looked up the shelf. "Peppermint tea, eh?"  
  
"I don't NEED your help, Wood. I can reach it by myself." WHOA. Did I just SAY that? Well, then, let me see how I do it. I kept on jumping up and down, feeling really foolish. Wood tugged my sleeve. "What?" I asked wearily. He pointed to a small stool. "Oh, hehe. Sorry." I picked up the stool and went over to the shelf. I caught Wood rummaging in another shelf. I reached up to the blasted jar of dried peppermint leaves but it seemed like it had a mind of its own since it started moving away from me, back into the farthest corner of the shelf. Not giving up easily, I clambered up farther trying to reach the jar. In doing so, the stool flipped in one foot and toppled. Leaving me holding into the shelf that seemed to be as slippery as ever. I grabbed the jar quickly. I felt my arms drag down and next thing I know, I fell. I closed my eyes hoping that it would block at least some of the pain when I hit the ground. But the pain never came. I felt two arms catch me. I opened my eyes, lo and behold, I felt like being drawn into two big bowls of champorado (A/N: This is a Filipino food, it's chocolate rice porridge. It's very good, believe me.), i felt like floating as I held Wood's gaze and then the magical moment suddenly dissipated.  
  
"That would have been a nice landing eh, Bell?" he said, breaking into a small chuckle. I slid myself off his arms with my jar. Straightening my shirt, I walked back to my teakettle which was beginning to whistle. I looked back at the pantry, seeing Wood walking out with a small jar of herb infusions, I stood up and put a big amount of peppermint into a tea strainer and plunked it into the boiling water.  
  
"Erm--Wood?" I said as the minty refreshing scent of the peppermint filled the room.  
  
"Yep?" he said, doing the same thing with another teakettle. That's when I realized he was making rasperry-strawberry tea. HAH! I always knew he was a little gay.  
  
Totally forgetting to say thank you, instead I went, "Is that raspberry-strawberry tea??"  
  
"Savour the moment, Bell. It is."  
  
"Mph." I mumbled. So much for that "moment" inside the pantry. He's back into being such a prat again.  
  
"Bell?" he asked, looking up from his tea, "You're welcome." he smiled his weird secret smile. Without really knowing what happened next, something really rare happened to me. I ACTUALLY SMILED!!! The horror, the horror! Okay, so I was overacting. He started pouring himself some tea and sitting on a tall stool. Minding my own bussiness, I resumed drinking tea again. Nothing happened for a good half an hour. Wood stood up and sat next to me, "So, what's the deal with the peppermint tea?" he said, pointing to my kettle and smiling.  
  
"Nothing. I just happen to like peppermint tea." I said, pouring myself another cup.  
  
"Y'know," he said, "My grandmother likes peppermint tea."  
  
"Nice attempt in being witty, Wood. Too bad it doesn't work."  
  
"Yeah, well. I try." he said, still smiling.  
  
"What are you smiling for, eh?" I said, getting really irked the way he was smiling at me.  
  
He didn't answer me but kept on smiling and a little bit more wider still. Then a panicky feeling struck me. He was leaning toward me slowly, Ookay then, this was really freaky. 'Erm, Wood, what the hell do you think you're doing?" I said in a squeaky, strangled voice. He was so close now that our noses were almost touching, heck, even I could hear his short shallow breathing. I could even smell the raspberry tea coming in and out in small sweet wisps from his breath. Okay, that description was totally uncalled for, it just made me more panicky. I closed my eyes as his lips brushed mine briefly. Okay so Alicia might have a field day with me if she gets a wind of it but in my opinion, it was good. With all the flip-floppy thing in my stomach, the skittering feeling in my heart (which could have been just my nerves) and the small fireworks display the moment I closed my eyes. The moment I opened them though, I could almost have slapped myself. Wood was actually smiling his secret smile again.  
  
"You know," he said, "Peppermint tea doesn't taste so bad after all." And he left me there with my mouth hanging and almost grazing the ground in surprise.  
  
A/N: OMG!!! I can't believe I just did that. It's a vital part of the plot though. So, what do you guys think? Oh, please be kind!!! 


End file.
